74. ANGEL

“You know nothing about us.”

I took offense to those words but didn’t show it. “I’ve been learning about it.”

“A mate is for life,” he said. “We’ve lived for hundreds of years and some of us still don’t find our true mates. Our mating was arranged just like Lucas’s marriage to Arabella.”

Those words shocked me. I just assumed that everyone found their true mate and bonded the way I had with my mates. I also believed that they couldn’t bond if they didn’t have a true mate.

“We met for the first time at our wedding.” His lips twitched. “I liked her instantly. For me, it was love at first sight, but she hated me. I had to work hard to make her love me. Now I’m doubting everything. A bond doesn’t lie, but feelings could be forced.”

I licked my lips and hesitated for a few seconds before I spoke. “What do you mean a bond doesn’t lie?”

“You carry their marks,” he muttered. “That means you’ve exchanged blood. The more you take their blood, and they take yours, the stronger your bond will grow.”

“Oh. I didn’t know that,” I said. “The books never mentioned that.”

His lips curled up into a smile. “We don’t want everyone to know our secrets.”

“That’s smart.”

The smile slipped from his lips. “Nate wasn’t planned. She was furious when she found out and told me that she didn’t want to have any children. I tried to talk her into keeping the baby instead of getting an abortion.”

A gasp fell from my lips before I could stop it. How could she have wanted to do that? I tried to imagine a world where none of my mates were born. Tears filled my eyes. It was too painful to even think about that.

“It was a shock when I returned to our chambers and found her suddenly excited about the pregnancy. She wanted to keep him and have more children.”

“Did you ever find out why she suddenly changed her mind?” I asked him when he remained silent.

“Power.” His eyes narrowed as he stared at the flames. “Everything was always about power. She never loved me, but I had hoped that the stronger I made our bond…” he trailed off with a shake of his head. “I should have stepped up earlier. I should have known that she would never…”

Silence settled between us.

My mind raced as I tried to think of something to say. The silence was starting to get uncomfortable.

I jerked in fright when the man suddenly stood. He walked over to the far wall and leaned down to pick up a bag that he carried over to me.

“You should get dressed. I don’t want you to get sick.” Crouching, he opened the bag and pulled out clothing. “I grabbed some of their clothing for you to wear since I know that another man’s clothes will be offensive. I’ll give you some privacy.”

He walked away, leaving me alone once again.

I hesitated before I picked up the shirt and raised it to my nose. Longing hit when I got a whiff of Nate’s scent still clinging to the material. I reached for the jacket and breathed in. It smelled new, but the sweatpants smelled like Mason. There was another shirt that smelled like Lucas.

Pushing the blanket from my shoulders, I stood, glancing in the direction he disappeared in. I decided to keep the nightshirt on and pull their clothes on top of mine. The more clothes I wore, the better.

I found a pair of socks in the bottom of the bag along with my boots.

A sigh fell from my lips.

Shivering, I wrapped the blanket around me again.

“Are you hungry?”

“Lucas never introduced us, what’s your name?” I asked him. “Can I call you by your name?”

“My name’s Brian.”

“I’d say it’s nice to meet you, but under the circumstances…” I gave him a small smile which he returned.

“Do you want me to move the mattress closer to the fire for you?”

I bit my lip as I stared at the fire. “How long are you going to keep me here?”

“As long as I need to.”

Brian walked past me to the mattress. He easily picked it up and moved it closer to the fire. I took a seat again and arranged the blanket around me.

“I’m not hungry,” I told him. “But thank you.”

He nodded but instead of taking a seat, he started pacing.

I watched him for a few minutes before I turned my head and stared at the flames again.

He said that another kingdom was going to attack tonight. Had they already attacked? Were my mates in danger? Were they injured?

“You shouldn’t worry,” Brian said. “They are stronger than they look. I’m more worried about the enemies.”

I frowned at him.

“They don’t know all the facts which means that they are going in blind based on false orders. Lucas will try his best not to kill innocents, but some of them wouldn’t care about the facts.”

“They have honor,” I muttered. “I know they will try their best to prevent this war from going further.”

“Get some more rest,” Brian ordered. “I’ll wake you up if something happens.”

I hesitated and then settled on the mattress.

I was tired, but I knew that I wasn’t going to be able to go back to sleep.

“Can you tell me more about mates? I won’t be able to sleep knowing what’s about to happen.”

“What do you want to know?” he questioned after a few minutes.

“Everything you can tell me.”

Brian sucked in a deep breath. “I already told you that the more you share blood, the stronger your bond will get. I’m not sure how or if it’s going to work because you’re human. I suppose it could be because you already accepted their marks.”

“I thought all mates got these marks.”

“As far as I know, only true mates wear each other’s marks.” He paused. “My mother taught me all about the importance of a mate. Everything I know, I learned from her. She taught me all the secrets about being the perfect mate.”

“What type of secrets?”

“The stronger the bond, the more…abilities the bonded couple gets. I’ve never experienced it with Dorothy. Our bond is strong, but not that strong.”

“Will you die if something happens to her?” I asked softly.

I remembered reading about werewolf mates. Of course, that was fiction but if dragons and vampires were real, they had to be too.

“We’re not true mates. It would hurt, but with time I will heal. If mates share a strong bond and something happens to one of them, death would be an easy option for them. They would either go crazy or die. It’s why I brought you here. The enemy would go after their weakness which is you. I don’t want anything to happen to my sons before they’ve managed to experience happiness.”

“I wish things could have been different,” I said. “Despite the things Dorothy had done, I know that deep down they still love her.”

He scoffed. “I doubt that. She never did anything a mother should have done for her kids. She only birthed them and then handed them over the first opportunity she got. They don’t have any fond memories of her…or me.”

“They will be happy that you helped us.”

Brian said nothing.

Letting out a sigh, I pulled the blanket up to my chin. My mind raced with images. Some bad and some good. We had no idea how things were going to turn out. I just hoped my mates walked out of this war alive and without any injuries.